Bhutan confirms first COVID-19 case

The isolated Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan has reported its first case of the COVID-19 after a US tourist tested positive, the Prime Minister said on Friday, reports India based The Hindu.

The tiny, land-locked country, famous for measuring Gross National Happiness has emerged as a popular tourist destination in recent years.

But the government immediately shut borders to foreign visitors for two weeks in an effort to limit the impact of a disease that has wreaked havoc in more developed countries around the world.

The 76-year-old man arrived in Bhutan from India on March 2, and was admitted to hospital on March 5 with a fever, where he tested positive for COVID-19, the office of Prime Minister Lotay Tshering said in a Facebook post.

The post added that there would be “two weeks’ restriction on all incoming tourists with immediate effect”.